SFA professor Dr. Dana Cooper selected as Archie McDonald Speaker Series interviewer

Dr. Dana Cooper

NACOGDOCHES, Texas - Dr. Dana Cooper, Student Success Center executive director and associate professor of history at Stephen F. Austin State University, will be the interviewer during the 2017 Archie McDonald Speaker Series.

The speaker series event is free and scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Monday, April 24, in the Baker Pattillo Student Center Grand Ballroom on the SFA campus. Cooper will interview guest speaker Dr. Douglas Brinkley, an American historian, best-selling author and CNN presidential historian.

"I was thrilled to hear that Dr. Douglas Brinkley was selected as the Archie McDonald speaker this year," Cooper said. "To have someone on our campus with his level of publishing success on such a wide range of topics and with his reputation as a respected media source on a wealth of issues is incredibly exciting."

Cooper is the author or editor of four manuscripts, eight scholarly articles, and seven various publications such as book reviews and reference articles. She has presented at 10 international and seven national conferences, and she has received 15 fellowships and grants.

Cooper's latest work, "Informal Ambassadors: American Women, Transatlantic Marriages, and Anglo-American Relations 1865-1945" published in 2014, led to her interview for the documentary "Million Dollar American Princesses," which appeared on the Smithsonian Channel.

The Archie McDonald Speaker Series was created in 2010 by SFA's College of Liberal and Applied Arts. Dr. Brian Murphy, dean of the college, designed the event to honor and preserve the legacy of Dr. Archie McDonald as a distinguished scholar, educator and community commentator. In the tradition of McDonald's writings and oral presentations, a prominent national figure is hosted annually at SFA to discuss contemporary cultural issues.

McDonald participated in the first three events in the speaker series, interviewing former heavyweight champion boxer and iconic businessman George Foreman, Apollo 12 astronaut and professional artist Alan Bean, and 61st U.S. Secretary of State James A. Baker III. Additional guests have included former U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, Grammy award-winning singer, composer and actor Lyle Lovett, Olympic All-Around Gold Medal winner in gymnastics Mary Lou Retton, and legendary head football coach Gene Stallings.

SFA's Student Government Association sponsors the speaker series, which is open to the public. Passes may be obtained at the Involvement Center on the first floor of the Baker Pattillo Student Center on the SFA campus or at the Nacogdoches Convention and Visitors Bureau, located at 200 East Main St. For more information, call (936) 468-5406.

A private reception for 100 guests will be held prior to the main event. Private reception tickets can be purchased by contacting April Smith, SFA associate director of development, at (936) 468-5406.